Habits: Cut A New Rut

As I look back at last year’s winter, I realize that summer will soon be over and snow will be here again (and there are only five months until Christmas!). I grew up in the Pacific Northwest and then moved to the desert for the better part of my adult life. Now, in the mid-west, I realize that I love winters! The snow, ice, warm socks and long gloves that go halfway up to the elbow. I love driving in the snow. I especially enjoy making new ruts, where others prefer to ride in well worn grooves. My wife always asks, “Why do you insist on driving like that? I have never had a reason that I could articulate until now. This winter I will tell her, “I am trying to avoid - and possibly change - other drivers’ habits.”

Habits are like a well-worn path in the snow that has been carved out from the tires of many vehicles. It is natural to follow that worn path and, in fact, it is often difficult to cut a new rut. Habits - actions performed over & over - begin with our thoughts. Once a habit of thought is formed (from repeating the thought process over and over), it is difficult to change. It becomes part of our paradigm and is ruled by our sub-conscious. It is only by deliberate and repeated action that the habit can be changed.

If you are unhappy with your current feelings or results of your actions, you must trace this back to your thoughts. Everything that you feel or do begins with your thoughts. Change your thought patterns and that will change your feelings and results.

Stephen Covey says: “Be proactive, begin with the end in mind, and put first things first.” This, in part, makes up the framework of how to accomplish anything you desire in life.

By subscribing to this blog and, I hope, implementing the success strategies outlined each week, you are being proactive. The next key is to begin with the end in mind. In order to alter a current feeling or result, it is important to begin by having a clear picture of the desired result or feeling. Remember, any undesirable feeling or result is caused by habitually following an old path of thought or behavior.

Form a clear picture of the new thought or feeling. Imagine it in your mind with as much enthusiasm as possible. If it is a feeling of freedom from an addiction, for example, get excited about it! Raise your heart rate with this feeling of new found freedom in your mind. Spread that smile on your face and imagine the new release from bondage with gladness in your heart and spirit. This is especially important: “starting with the end in mind” means tying up your emotions with the new picture you are forming. Get involved, the more feelings and emotions, the easier it will be to make a new path or groove that will be accepted by the sub-conscious. If you only get a little excited, the sub-conscious will naturally gravitate to the old, well worn path. It doesn’t know any other way. But this is only the first step - it must be followed up with concentration.

When I try to wear a new groove in the snow, unless other drivers follow in my new path, the old worn groove is where following cars naturally track. The sub-conscious follows the well-worn path of our thoughts and they, in turn, dictate our current feelings and results. To change the outcome we must begin with the end in mind and focus our mind with concentration.

More about concentration next week.

As always, I encourage feedback and comments.

Tags: Habits